I was looking over Rieslings that I might open this month--almost all are from Germany with the excetpion of one dessert Riesling from Washington State.and two Rieslings from Austria--one inexpensive and one pricier one. I have a 375 ml. bottle of 2005 Donhoff Niederhauser Hermannshohle. Would that in an awkward stage? Maybe David B. can weigh in.I also have some Maximin Grunhauser and Fritz Haag and 2001 Muller Catoir. Will probably open a Muller Catoir for sure and maybe a Joseph Leitz. I also have a 2001 Kloster Erberbach Eberbach Erbacher Marcobrunn Riesling Ausles Gold Kapsel that I am curious to taste. I don't find many Rheingaus to collect. Maybe I should save it for a special occasion but who knows when that might be! Would the 2005 Donhoff Auslese be a mistake to open now?

A very clear, transparent, pure, slightly golden yellow with a green tinge to it.It immediately smells lovely: delicate, of old forest wood and fungus, lemon and lime rind, cream.In the mouth it's richly flavoured and slightly honeyed, yet light in weight, with a gentle sweetness, balancing light acidity that plays a supporting role without dominating in any way.It is simply delicious. I would have liked to see flavours of slate and/or kerosene, but it didn't matter that I didn't because it was very good anyway.

What's even greater is that, at 8.5% abv, one can drink 1.5 times more of this than a 13% abv wine for the same alcohol consumption - which is just as well, because this wine is particularly easy to drink.

Hi Ben -

Thank you for the great note. Domherr is a top site by all accounts, but I haven't found one to try yet. As David says, Reinhold Haart is an excellent producer, and I should really buy more of his wines.

2003 Salomon-Undhof Riesling Undhof Kögl ReserveSomewhat floral nose. Full-bodied, ripe, broad, dry, well balanced, with good underlying acidity. Very mineral, with pineapple, pear, orange, lemon, and nut flavors. Shows some light notes of ground black pepper on the finish. Excellent, and still has a way to go.

1990 Salomon-Undhof Riesling Kremser Kögl ReserveOpened about an hour before pouring. Nose of tropical fruits, lychees, and light petrol. Full, round, bone dry, nicely balanced and focused; creamy and rather baroque, with subtler acidity. Tastes of honey, golden fruits, pears, and minerals, with traces of baking spices and coffee. Nice length. Excellent mature dry Riesling – not a showstopper, but a great pairing with a meatier white fish.

Now, for my question(s?): Are Undhof Kögl and Kremser Kögl both names for the same site? Normally, I would not expect them to be, but I have not seen any recent Salomon wines labeled as being from Kremser Kögl. To add to my confusion, I then went to the Traditionsweingüter Österreichisch website (http://www.traditionsweingueter.com/new ... lagen.html), and found a Steiner Kögl among their listing of Erste Lagen for Kremstal. Of course, Salomon is based in Krems-Stein.

If someone could please help me get my vineyard identities straight, I would be very appreciative! Thank you.

A local retailer has Klostor Riesling Qualitätswein 2002 on a very attractive sale. Alc 10.5%, residual sugar ~22%, but acid ~7%. Is that a combination that's likely to have aged gracefully for nearly a decade?

Paul Rainbow wrote:A local retailer has Klostor Riesling Qualitätswein 2002 on a very attractive sale. Alc 10.5%, residual sugar ~22%, but acid ~7%. Is that a combination that's likely to have aged gracefully for nearly a decade?

Nothing wrong with the stats, but the producer gives me pause.

There behind the glass lies a real blade of grass. Be careful as you pass. Move along. Move along.

2003 Salomon-Undhof Riesling Undhof Kögl ReserveSomewhat floral nose. Full-bodied, ripe, broad, dry, well balanced, with good underlying acidity. Very mineral, with pineapple, pear, orange, lemon, and nut flavors. Shows some light notes of ground black pepper on the finish. Excellent, and still has a way to go.

1990 Salomon-Undhof Riesling Kremser Kögl ReserveOpened about an hour before pouring. Nose of tropical fruits, lychees, and light petrol. Full, round, bone dry, nicely balanced and focused; creamy and rather baroque, with subtler acidity. Tastes of honey, golden fruits, pears, and minerals, with traces of baking spices and coffee. Nice length. Excellent mature dry Riesling – not a showstopper, but a great pairing with a meatier white fish.

Now, for my question(s?): Are Undhof Kögl and Kremser Kögl both names for the same site? Normally, I would not expect them to be, but I have not seen any recent Salomon wines labeled as being from Kremser Kögl. To add to my confusion, I then went to the Traditionsweingüter Österreichisch website (http://www.traditionsweingueter.com/new ... lagen.html), and found a Steiner Kögl among their listing of Erste Lagen for Kremstal. Of course, Salomon is based in Krems-Stein.

If someone could please help me get my vineyard identities straight, I would be very appreciative! Thank you.

Kogl is the site. Salomon has messed around with the wine naming conventions a few times. The 2006 is 2006 Erich Salomon-Undhof Riesling Reserve Kögl. There is a 1995 Auslese (!) that I have in the cellar labeled 1995 Erich Salomon-Undhof Riesling Auslese Kremser Kögl.

There behind the glass lies a real blade of grass. Be careful as you pass. Move along. Move along.

2010 Immich-Batterieberg Riesling "CAI" Kabinett$21 at Chambers, under screwcap. Opened with a bit of trepidation considering how painfully acidic a Peter Lauer "Senior" was recently. This one's not lacking in acidity either, but the components are in much better balance. There's bright grapefruit, lime and apple fruit here and with air a pretty floral scent emerges; racy and bright in the mouth with the acidity quite nicely balanced and it's very enjoyable to drink.

Out to dinner with the relatives last night, decided to have a go at the von Buhl Forster Ungeheuer Riesling Auslese (vintage not on the menu and when I called back to the restaurant today they claimed it was "non vintage" which I took as code for "we can't find the sommelier at the moment"). In any case it was wonderful. Not heavy in any way, but with a an excellent almost ice tea with lemon like finish. Incredibly refreshing.

Long time no post - a 93 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Spatlese seems like a good excuse. The cork on this was soaked tho=roguh but no ill effects n the wine. Glowing green gold. Spatlese the way they used to be made, there are many kabinett these days that will be higher must weight than this. Petroleum Jelly notes give away the age, over lime oil, lemon, blackcurrant buds and vanilla, still with delicate floral motes about it. Acids are well resolved, length still holding, a lovely refreshing drink at 18 years of age.

While reserved at first - showing talc and slate, sauteed apples and peaches, red apples - the sheer essence of its personality grows more intense until you can get lost sniffing it, studying the understated interplay of fruit and minerals. On the palate, the way the joyous acidity complements the sweetness creates an impression of the Platonic ideal of fresh fruit, while its light touch hammers again the Teutonic claim to fame: no one else makes delicate beauties like this.

While reserved at first - showing talc and slate, sauteed apples and peaches, red apples - the sheer essence of its personality grows more intense until you can get lost sniffing it, studying the understated interplay of fruit and minerals. On the palate, the way the joyous acidity complements the sweetness creates an impression of the Platonic ideal of fresh fruit, while its light touch hammers again the Teutonic claim to fame: no one else makes delicate beauties like this.

I had a 2004 Karthauserhof Spatlese last night. It was a loose mineral pleasure with some lip-smacking residual sugar, but not much more. Your 2004 sounds more intense and complex.

While reserved at first - showing talc and slate, sauteed apples and peaches, red apples - the sheer essence of its personality grows more intense until you can get lost sniffing it, studying the understated interplay of fruit and minerals. On the palate, the way the joyous acidity complements the sweetness creates an impression of the Platonic ideal of fresh fruit, while its light touch hammers again the Teutonic claim to fame: no one else makes delicate beauties like this.

I had a 2004 Karthauserhof Spatlese last night. It was a loose mineral pleasure with some lip-smacking residual sugar, but not much more. Your 2004 sounds more intense and complex.

A bargain $19 Cdn, SC, 12% alc, shared with the staff at Rics Grill downtown who are keen to have a nice food-friendly riesling on the wine list. I did not serve too chilled as is my norm.

Color. Darkish straw with faint lemon hint.

Nose. Lime, "minerally/wetstones" they thought. Can go with that, also hint of peach and pineapple. No gasolein, even on day 2.

Palate. Initial thoughts were off-dry, light bodied, apple/pear, good to leave half hour to open. Very slight effervescence and good acidity. Very good mouthfeel, finish has complimentary structure and a strong mineral tone. Marta and Cayleigh both thought "hint of RS is perfect for this wine...we can sell this for sure". QPR!

One must really go out of ones way to find Mosel Riesling in the Pfalz. In this ex-cellar world that is Germany, wine shops are scarce (especially in wine regions) and so I was happy to find a good source for Schaefer (sort of) locally.This is one super dense, very taut Schaefer Kabinett. There is so much tension, it seems like a steel cable or two is about to snap back and take your face off as the bridge falls. Basically all mineral, but what fruit it does have is very pretty. It seems far drier than usual, but what a wine.

Eugen Müller makes wines that are so succulent and with such purity of fruit that to make them anything less than trocken would be redundant and even obscene. Even in 2010 the wines don’t taste completely dry, and this is packed with peach (go figure), mirabelle plum marmelade, pumpkin seed, sweet corn and mace. Clearly deacidified, but without much damage and delicious if not exactly delicate.

While reserved at first - showing talc and slate, sauteed apples and peaches, red apples - the sheer essence of its personality grows more intense until you can get lost sniffing it, studying the understated interplay of fruit and minerals. On the palate, the way the joyous acidity complements the sweetness creates an impression of the Platonic ideal of fresh fruit, while its light touch hammers again the Teutonic claim to fame: no one else makes delicate beauties like this.

I had a 2004 Karthauserhof Spatlese last night. It was a loose mineral pleasure with some lip-smacking residual sugar, but not much more. Your 2004 sounds more intense and complex.

Well, its charm was how the intensity was so ephemeral.

It has become apparent to me that when Germany has a 'small, or rainy, or cool, or weak' vintage, that is the year to go long on the Wein-gau. 2004 and 2008 produced some very fine wines there.

2003 Salomon-Undhof Riesling Undhof Kögl ReserveSomewhat floral nose. Full-bodied, ripe, broad, dry, well balanced, with good underlying acidity. Very mineral, with pineapple, pear, orange, lemon, and nut flavors. Shows some light notes of ground black pepper on the finish. Excellent, and still has a way to go.

1990 Salomon-Undhof Riesling Kremser Kögl ReserveOpened about an hour before pouring. Nose of tropical fruits, lychees, and light petrol. Full, round, bone dry, nicely balanced and focused; creamy and rather baroque, with subtler acidity. Tastes of honey, golden fruits, pears, and minerals, with traces of baking spices and coffee. Nice length. Excellent mature dry Riesling – not a showstopper, but a great pairing with a meatier white fish.

Now, for my question(s?): Are Undhof Kögl and Kremser Kögl both names for the same site? Normally, I would not expect them to be, but I have not seen any recent Salomon wines labeled as being from Kremser Kögl. To add to my confusion, I then went to the Traditionsweingüter Österreichisch website (http://www.traditionsweingueter.com/new ... lagen.html), and found a Steiner Kögl among their listing of Erste Lagen for Kremstal. Of course, Salomon is based in Krems-Stein.

If someone could please help me get my vineyard identities straight, I would be very appreciative! Thank you.

Kogl is the site. Salomon has messed around with the wine naming conventions a few times. The 2006 is 2006 Erich Salomon-Undhof Riesling Reserve Kögl. There is a 1995 Auslese (!) that I have in the cellar labeled 1995 Erich Salomon-Undhof Riesling Auslese Kremser Kögl.

Salil wrote:2010 Immich-Batterieberg Riesling "CAI" Kabinett$21 at Chambers, under screwcap. Opened with a bit of trepidation considering how painfully acidic a Peter Lauer "Senior" was recently. This one's not lacking in acidity either, but the components are in much better balance. There's bright grapefruit, lime and apple fruit here and with air a pretty floral scent emerges; racy and bright in the mouth with the acidity quite nicely balanced and it's very enjoyable to drink.

Hi Salil -

Thank you for the note. I just had this wine and a few other Mosel Wine Merchant offerings at a tasting yesterday - including a couple from Lauer. At last, these wines are available in Massachusetts, so I don't have to go over the border to buy them anymore.

October 22, 2011 – Mosel Wine Merchant Introductory Tasting (Clemens Busch, Peter Lauer, Immich-Batterieberg), Vintages, Concord, MABesides being a great opportunity to try some recent releases from some up-and-coming Mosel and Saar producers, I also got my first chance to try some 2010s, although it is too way early for me to make any generalizations about the vintage as a whole.

The controversial 2010 Lauer Fass 6 Senior was not poured. Since they did have a bottle for sale, however, I took a chance and bought it. I have certainly read the caveats about it being excessively acidic, but figured that I will try it sometime anyway, given that these other two Lauers were showing very nicely.

2010 Clemens Busch Riesling Trocken MoselMedium-bodied, dry, though in Champagne terms this would be Brut rather than Extra Brut. Nicely balanced, with good underlying acidity – not at all austere. Nice, clear filigree minerality here, with some citrus and stone fruit notes. Very good. $25.

2008 Clemens Busch Pündericher Marienburg Riesling Erste Lage FahrlayModerately full, concentrated, slightly round, off-dry, well balanced, with good underlying acidity. Shows very elegant minerality, along with orange, floral, and saline notes. Excellent. This will be very interesting to follow. $45.

2010 Immich-Batterieberg Riesling EscheburgEscheburg is not a vineyard or a parcel name, but rather the name of an old building at the estate that dates back to the Middle Ages. This bottling had a slightly funky nose that initially had me thinking there was a bit of leftover sulfur there, but which blew off after a minute or two. Full-bodied, concentrated, off-dry; just a bit more noticeably sweet than the previous wine. Shows subtly powerful minerality, along with notes of cherries, apples, peaches, and citrus fruits. Excellent. $35.

2008 Reinhard & Beate Knebel Winninger Röttgen Riesling Spätlese TrockenReally nice mineral/citrus/floral/cardamom/yeasty nose. Medium-bodied, broad, and nicely balanced. The acidity is high, as one would expect from 2008, but it is very well integrated. Definitely a mineral-driven wine– very slaty, lightly chalky/earthy/saline, with flavors of herbs/spices, pears, fresh nuts, and citrus zest. Not noticeably different on Day 2 – a little more linear, maybe, but much the same aromatically. Excellent.

2006 Schloss Gobelsburg Riesling Zöbinger HeiligensteinProgressing nicely, with no trace of heat even though the baby fat has largely worn off this wine. It's a bit more golden that I would expect, but that's likely attributable to the ripeness of the vintage, and the fruit is quite tropical. There's a bracing acidity that was missing from the wine on release, so the loss of that baby fat is a plus. I might drink most of the bottles I have soon, as it's in a pretty nice place right now.

There behind the glass lies a real blade of grass. Be careful as you pass. Move along. Move along.